September 2015 - Perelman School of Medicine

ISSUE SEVEN
September 2015
Volume 4, Issue 7
PENN PSYCHIATRY
PERSPECTIVE
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania | Department of Psychiatry
Ideas, Suggestions,
and News!
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suggestions, and news about your
activities for stories or
announcements in Penn Psychiatry
Perspective, the eNewsletter of the
University of Pennsylvania
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submit your recommendations to
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Dwight L. Evans, MD
Ruth Meltzer Professor and Chair
In this Issue
Departmental Goings On....1-3
News and Announcements.4-5
Leadership Appointments.....5
Awards and Honors............6-7
Upcoming Events..................7
www.med.upenn.edu/psych
Departmental Goings On
Penn Psychiatry Study Shows First Signs that Drug Used to Treat ADHD May
Improve Cognitive Difficulties for Menopausal Women
C. Neill Epperson, MD was the lead author of a new study providing evidence that a drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may help menopausal women who are dealing with the decline of executive functions. According to the research, women experiencing
difficulty with executive functions such as motivation for
work, time management, attention, organization, memory,
and problem solving with onset during the menopause transition may find improvement with lisdexamfetamine (LDX).
The study is the first to show that LDX improved subjective
and objective measures of cognitive decline commonly experienced in menopausal
women. Results of the study were published online on June 11, 2015 in the journal
Psychopharmacology.
“Reports of cognitive decline, particularly in executive functions, are widespread among
menopausal women,” said Dr. Epperson in a June 11 Penn Medicine news release. “There
are approximately 90 million post-menopausal women living in the U.S. alone, and with
the average age of onset occurring at 52, the great majority of those women will live
in the postmenopausal state for at least one-third of their lives. Therefore, promoting
healthy cognitive aging among menopausal women should be a major public health
goal.”
Study participants included 32 healthy, non-ADHD-diagnosed women between the ages
of 45 and 60 experiencing difficulties with executive functions during the menopause
transition. They received a once-daily dose of LDX (up to 60 mg/d) or placebo for four
weeks before undergoing a two-week washout and being crossed over to the other
condition for another four weeks. Psychostimulants such as LDX work by promoting the
release of dopamine, which is impaired in ADHD and other disorders characterized by
executive function problems.
The results of this study were promising but Dr. Epperson cautioned, “Although we observed that short-term use of LDX was well tolerated and effective in several subjective
and objective areas, long-term studies of menopausal women receiving LDX are needed,
similar to those conducted for ADHD patients. It is also important for clinicians to confirm
that a woman’s complaints of worsening memory are in the executive function domains,
are temporally related to the transition to menopause, and are not indicative of some
Continued on page 2
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Departmental Goings On
Departmental Goings On
ADHD Drug May Improve Cognitive Difficulties in Menopausal Women
other pathological cognitive impairment before prescribing a trial of LDX.”
Continued from page 1
The study was funded in part through an investigator-initiated research grant provided by Shire, the manufacturers of LDX. Research from the study was highlighted in a July 8, 2015 article and segment on CBS3 television (Philadelphia).
Dr. Epperson is Professor of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology at Penn and Director of the Penn Center for Women’s
Behavioral Wellness (PCWBW) in the Department of Psychiatry. Other Penn Psychiatry and PCWBW co-authors included Sheila
Shanmugan, Deborah R. Kim, MD, Sarah B. Mathews, MD, Kathryn A. Czarkowski, MA, Jeanette Bradley, Dina H. Appleby,
and Claudia Iannelli, MS. Co-author Mary D. Sammel, ScD is affiliated with both the PCWBW and the Department of Biostatistics
and Epidemiology at Penn. Co-author Thomas E. Brown, PhD is in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University.
View the June 11, 2015 Penn Medicine news release at - http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2015/06/epperson/
Penn Psychiatry Experts Present Study at SLEEP 2015
The Penn Psychiatry research team of Namni Goel, PhD, Andrea Spaeth, PhD,
and David F. Dinges, PhD presented an abstract indicating that adults who are
chronically sleep restricted may need to compensate for decreased morning
resting metabolic rate by reducing caloric intake or increasing physical activity
to prevent weight gain. The abstract was presented in June 2015 at SLEEP 2015,
the 29th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC. Dr.
Dr. Goel
Dr. Spaeth
Dr. Dinges
Goel, the study’s senior author, noted that “short sleep duration is a significant
risk factor for weight gain and obesity, particularly in African Americans and men.
This research suggests that reducing the number of calories consumed can help prevent that weight gain and some of the health
issues associated with obesity in Caucasians and particularly in African Americans.” The study included data obtained from 36
healthy adults, ages 21 to 50.
Dr. Goel is Research Associate Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry. Dr. Dinges is Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry and Director of the Division of Sleep and Chronobiology. Dr. Spaeth is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Division of Sleep and Chronobiology. All
are members of the Department of Psychiatry at Penn.
Sleep Deprivation Reduces Aggression, Mating Behavior in Flies
Matthew S. Kayser, MD, PhD was the lead author on a new study probing the cellular and molecular
mechanisms that govern aggression and sleep, using fruitflies (Drosophila) as the animal model. The research team found that sleep deprivation reduces aggression in fruitflies and affects their reproductive
fitness. They also identified a molecular pathway involved in communicating sleep loss to aggression.
The study was published online on July 28, 2015 in eLife.
Dr. Kayser noted in a July 28, 2015 Penn Medicine news release that the relative simplicity of the fruitfly
model is an advantage to studying the sleep-aggression link. “We first sleep deprived the flies and
looked at their fighting behavior, and saw a very clear effect on behavior," he said. “Suddenly they go
from fighting quite a bit to sharing resources and not fighting much.”
Dr. Kayser and his colleagues also studied the effects of reduced aggression on social behavior, specifically reproductive behavior and success. “We asked whether sleep deprivation affects sexual fitness?” The answer was yes - reduced aggressiveness
of the sleep-deprived male flies clearly impaired their mating success when competing with non-sleepy males for females.
“Not to over-anthropomorphize,” added Dr. Kayser, “but I think this reinforces that aggression is important for certain things,
such as mating, not just a negative behavior. In the fly, aggression can be important for carrying on a species’ genetic code,
and if you do things that impede aggression, it can have negative consequences."
Continued on page 3
www.med.upenn.edu/psych
Penn Psychiatry Perspective - September 2015
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Departmental Goings On
Sleep Deprivation Reduces Aggression, Mating Behavior in Flies
Continued from page 2
Next steps include figuring out the neurobiological mechanisms that control the sleep-aggression link. Much farther in the future
may be the possibility of clinical applications for humans. “I think that’s a real attraction to studying aggression in the fly – to work
on the cellular and molecular controls to understand the basic biology of this pathway so we can leverage this knowledge into
something that is eventually clinically relevant,” Dr. Kayser noted. The study research was highlighted in several media outlets,
including Sleep Review and ALN.
Dr. Kayser is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Penn. Other Penn co-authors on the study included senior author Amita Sehgal,
PhD, Benjamin Mainwaring, and Zhifeng Yue, all in Dr. Sehgal’s laboratory in the Department of Neuroscience.
View the July 28, 2015 Penn Medicine news release at - http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2015/07/sehgal/
Renowned Psychiatry Professor Karl Rickels Endows Third Professorship
Karl Rickels, MD, Professor of Psychiatry and the Stuart and Emily B.H. Mudd Professor of Human Behavior and Reproduction at the Perelman School of Medicine, has
once again extended his enormous generosity to the Department of Psychiatry by
endowing his third professorship.
At a festive event held at the Smilow Center for Translational Research on January 15, 2015, Penn Medicine, the Department, and over 130 guests celebrated the
appointment of Chairman Dwight L. Evans, MD as the inaugural Roehrhoff Rickels
Professor. The Professorship is intended to honor “a renowned psychiatrist known
internationally for interest in translational medicine with particular interest in Biological Psychiatry inclusive of mood and anxiety and depression disorders.” At the
ceremony, J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, Executive Vice President of the University of
Pennsylvania for the Health System and Dean of the Perelman School of Medicine,
Ralph W. Muller, Chief Executive Officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health
System, and Dr. Evans each thanked Dr. Rickels for his continuing benevolence to the
Department, medical school, and University.
The Roehrhoff Rickels Chair honors Dr. Rickels’ mother’s and father’s families, keeping with his lifelong devotion to his family, lovingly expressed through his support
for the first two chairs he endowed. The Karl E. Rickels Professorship in Psychiatry,
created in 1993 and held by Wade H. Berrettini, MD, PhD, honors the memory of
Dr. Rickels’ father, Karl Eduard Rickels, the successful CEO of a chocolate company in Germany and, also, an economist, poet,
musician/composer, philosopher, and fine artist. Through his encouragement and support, Dr. Rickels pursued his consequential career in medicine. The Karl and Linda Rickels Professorship in Psychiatry, established in 1998 and held by
Raquel E. Gur, MD, PhD, honors his late and dear wife, Linda, who died in 2008.
This summer marks Dr. Rickels’ 60th year as a member of Penn’s Department of Psychiatry, since he began his residency in 1955.
Over the past six decades, Dr. Rickels has earned the informal title of “Dean of Psychopharmacology of Anxiety Disorders” as a
world-acclaimed pioneer in the discipline, particularly for his successful development and use of measurement-based therapy
for anxiety and depression. In 2012 in Stockholm, Dr. Rickels received the "CINP Pioneers in Psychopharmacology Award" from
the International College of Neuropsychopharmacology (CINP) for his groundbreaking work in the development of medications to treat anxiety disorders.
Dr. Rickels is the author of more than 600 scientific publications, books, chapters, and reviews on such diverse topics as anxiety,
panic disorders, social phobias, depression, insomnia, PMS, and treatment response. Dr. Rickels is also the Founder of both the
Mood and Anxiety Disorders Section in the Department of Psychiatry and the Division of Human Behavior and Reproduction in
the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. He recounted his remarkable life and career in his memoir, A Serendipitous Life:
From German POW to American Psychiatrist, published by Notting Hill Press in 2011.
www.med.upenn.edu/psych Penn Psychiatry Perspective - September 2015
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News and Announcements
Dr. Hadley Announces Retirement
Trevor R. Hadley, PhD announced his retirement from the faculty in June
after a long and distinguished career as a mental health services researcher and public policy expert. Dr. Hadley, Emeritus Professor of Psychology
in Psychiatry at Penn, is the Founder and former Director of the Center for
Mental Health Policy and Services Research (CMHPSR). He formerly served
in public sector positions as commissioner and deputy commissioner in
several state mental health agencies and currently serves as a consultant to the Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health, several states,
and national organizations. Dr. Hadley’s research focused on utilization,
cost, benefits, and staffing of mental health programs. In carrying out his
research, he initiated, fostered, and maintained multiple essential collaborations with public mental health institutions. He recognized that
these relationships pose many logistical and organizational difficulties,
Trevor Hadley, PhD and Cheryl Borck-Hadley, MSW
and he made maintenance of these bonds one of the unique strengths of
the CMHPSR. Internationally, Dr. Hadley’s work has included consultation with mental health programs in England, Canada, Japan,
Turkey, and with the World Health Organization. Dr. Hadley will continue providing leadership to the Public Psychiatry Fellowship
Program in the Department and support to postdoctoral fellows.
The Department wishes Dr. Hadley all the best as he embarks on the next phase of his journey!
News and Announcements
In the News
Penn Department of Psychiatry faculty are highly acclaimed experts in their chosen fields, often contacted by local, national, and
international media outlets for their knowledge about topics of immediate interest. In this section, we provide just a brief sample
of the many recent interactions that our faculty have with the press. (For a more complete listing, please visit Penn Psychiatry In
the News - http://www.med.upenn.edu/psych/news.html.)
Links Found Between HIV and Schizophrenia Diagnoses
Michael Blank, PhD was quoted in a July 10, 2015 Reuters Health story on a new study that found
increased risks going both ways between diagnoses of HIV and schizophrenia. According to the story,
HIV was linked to an increased risk of schizophrenia, and schizophrenia was linked to a higher risk of
HIV, but only when coupled with substance abuse. Dr. Blank and Marlene M. Eisenberg, PhD co-wrote
a commentary accompanying the study published online on July 2 in The Lancet HIV.
The findings in the new study point to the need for increased HIV testing in mental health centers, Dr.
Blank said in the article, citing the inadequacies of the current situation. "It's an exception, rather than a rule, to have HIV tests
available in a mental health clinic in the United States,” he said. “Given that the risks of HIV are elevated, we're recommending that
testing be available in mental health centers and that a treatment cascade be developed for mental illnesses and people with
schizophrenia in particular." He added, "What we need to do is provide a care system for people who have lots of co-occurring
conditions.” Dr. Blank is Associate Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry and Co-Director of the Penn Mental Health AIDS Research
Center in the Department of Psychiatry at Penn. Dr. Eisenberg is a Research Associate in the HIV/AIDS Prevention Research Division
in the Department.
View the July 10, 2015 Reuters Health article at - http://www.consultant360.com/story/links-found-between-hiv-and-schizophrenia-diagnoses
www.med.upenn.edu/psych
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News and Announcements
Can Brain Games Change Behaviors Long Term?
Caryn Lerman, PhD was featured in a June 8, 2015 Philadelphia Inquirer story discussing her ongoing study
investigating brain games, backed by a $2 million National Cancer Institute (NCI) grant. “There’s some evidence that brain games can improve cognitive functions,” Dr. Lerman said. But the more important question,
she told the Inquirer, is “can we change the brain to change behavior?” For example, could brain games help
with healthy behaviors such as following a proper diet and avoiding smoking. The clinical trial supported by
the NCI includes 200 adults ages 18 to 35 to test the theory “that if you activate these higher brain networks
that are involved in executive control, the brain will assert more top-down control over lower regions of
the brain that drive people to these gratifying behaviors like [unhealthy] eating and smoking,” Dr. Lerman
explained.
Also quoted in the piece is Dawn J. Mechanic-Hamilton, PhD, who has used a brain game as part of a comprehensive behavioral intervention program for adults with mild cognitive impairment in combination with
classwork and individual coaching. "If you're going to spend time doing other things that are cognitively challenging," she said, such as taking music lessons or learning a language, "then you shouldn't replace it with a
computerized program." On the other hand, Dr. Mechanic-Hamilton said, brain games are likely better for you
than a few hours of TV watching - but even that's not clear. She added that researchers and clinicians are just
beginning to examine to what extent and for whom brain games are beneficial.
Dr. Lerman is the Mary W. Calkins Professor in Penn’s Department of Psychiatry and Annenberg School for
Communication, Deputy Director of Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center, and Co-Director of the Penn Medicine Neuroscience Center.
Dr. Mechanic-Hamilton is Instructor in Psychiatry and Clinical Director of the Cognitive Fitness Program in the Penn Memory Center in the Department of Psychiatry.
View the June 8, 2015 Philadelphia Inquirer article at – http://articles.philly.com/2015-06-08/news/63149854_1_brain-gameslumosity-online-games
Dr. Basner Interviewed on the Science of Sleep
Mathias Basner, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Sleep and Chronobiology in Psychiatry at Penn, shared his
insights on the effects of sleep deprivation, the relationship between work and sleep, and the small steps
anyone can take to improve their sleep immediately in a July 8, 2015 Huffington Post Q and A with Arianna
Huffington. He responded to questions about his research on the effects of sleep loss on neurobehavioral
and cognitive functions, sleep time and waking activities, and how to achieve better sleep. Among his observations, he told the Huffington Post, “Our research overwhelmingly showed that time spent working was
the most prominent sleep thief. It was evident across all socio-demographic strata and no matter how we
approached the question.”
View Dr. Basner’s July 8, 2015 Huffington Post interview at - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/mathias-basnersleep_b_7754280.html
Leadership Appointments
Dr. Rostain Appointed Vice Chair for Education
Anthony L. Rostain, MD, MA has been appointed Vice Chair for Education of the Department of Psychiatry, effective September 1, 2015. For the past 16 years, Dr. Rostain has done exceptional work as
Director of the Office of Education in the Department, and he will continue to work with Chair Dwight
L. Evans, MD as he assumes expanded responsibilities to maximize educational excellence throughout
the Department. In his new role, Dr. Rostain will have responsibility for all departmental education
and training programs, including the psychiatric residency training program, the fellowship training
programs, the postdoctoral and doctoral student programs, and the undergraduate medical education program.
In addition to his new role, Dr. Rostain is Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at Penn and Director of the Adult Development
Disorders Unit, which includes the Adult ADHD Treatment and Research Program - of which he is Co-Founder and Medical Director
- and the Adult Social Learning Disorders Program. He is also Director of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Behavioral
Health Center's Developmental Neuropsychiatry Program.
www.med.upenn.edu/psych
Penn Psychiatry Perspective - September 2015
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Awards and Honors
Dr. Lerman Receives NCI Outstanding Investigator Award
Awards and Honors
Caryn Lerman, PhD received the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Outstanding Investigator Award (OIA) in June
2015. This highly competitive honor is bestowed upon a special group of influential researchers with outstanding
records of productivity in cancer research. The OIA supports investigators with up to $600,000 in direct costs per
year for seven years to provide funding stability. During her distinguished career, Dr. Lerman has focused on translating research in neuroscience, pharmacology, genetics, and behavioral science to develop innovative therapeutic
approaches for behavior change. She has published over 355 peer-reviewed papers, including work that elucidates
novel neurocognitive and neurochemical mechanisms underlying nicotine addiction and relapse. Her research
explores how the brain’s cognitive control system can be enhanced to improve self-control over behaviors that
contribute to cancer risk.
Dr. Lerman will receive $6.5 million over a seven-year period. This grant will continue to address the bold premise in her research - that it’s
possible to enhance the brain’s capacity to over-ride behavioral habits that contribute to obesity and cigarette smoking, and ultimately to
cancer. Such habits are associated with cognitive impairments and altered brain functions that can interfere with goal-directed behaviors.
Dr. Lerman has been continuously funded by the NCI since 1989, with grants totaling approximately $67 million in total costs, including a $20 million NCI Provocative Question Award. She has served on the NCI Board of Scientific Advisors, the National Human Genome
Research Advisory Council, and the National Institutes on Drug Abuse Advisory Council. She is also the past President of the Society for
Research on Nicotine and Tobacco, and an Elected Member of the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine).
Dr. Lerman is the Mary W. Calkins Professor in Penn’s Department of Psychiatry and Annenberg School for Communication, Deputy Director of Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center, and Co-Director of the Penn Medicine Neuroscience Center.
Dr. Beidas Selected to Receive ABCT Award
Rinad S. Beidas, PhD has been selected to receive the 2015 Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) President’s New Researcher Award. According to the ABCT, this award is “based upon an early
program of research that reflects factors such as: consistency with the mission of ABCT; independent work
published in high-impact journals; and promise of developing theoretical or practical applications that represent clear advances to the field.” The ABCT is “a multidisciplinary organization committed to the advancement of scientific approaches to the understanding and improvement of human functioning through the
investigation and application of behavioral, cognitive, and other evidence-based principles to the assessment, prevention, treatment of human problems, and the enhancement of health and well-being.”
Dr. Beidas’s research, supported through a K23 awarded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH),
centers on the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) for youth in community settings. Dr. Beidas
is particularly interested in understanding how to most effectively support therapists, organizations, and systems in the implementation of EBPs for youth psychiatric disorders. She will receive the ABCT President’s New Researcher Award at the ABCT’s
Annual Convention in November 2015 in Chicago. Dr. Beidas is Assistant Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Penn and the Director of Implementation Research at the Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research in the Department of Psychiatry.
Dr. McKay Appointed to Serve on IPTA Study Section
James R. McKay, PhD has been appointed to serve as a member of the Interventions to Prevent and Treat
Addictions (IPTA) Study Section of the NIH Center for Scientific Review for the term beginning July 1, 2015
and ending June 30, 2018. According to the Center, “members are selected on the basis of their demonstrated competence and achievement in their scientific discipline as evidenced by the quality of research
accomplishments, publications in scientific journals, and other significant scientific activities, achievements and honors.” The IPTA study section “reviews applications for qualitative and quantitative human
research aimed at developing, modifying, adapting, piloting or testing interventions to prevent the onset
of addictive and related problem behaviors, prevent the progression of substance use to abuse, curtail the
progression of substance abuse to dependence, prevent relapse, and treat substance use disorders and
other addictive behaviors, at the individual level. Prevention and treatment interventions tested under both
Continued on page 7
controlled (efficacy) and real-world (effectiveness) conditions are included.”
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Penn Psychiatry Perspective - September 2015
Awards and Honors
Page 7
Dr. McKay Appointed to Serve on IPTA Study Section
Continued from page 6
Dr. McKay is Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Penn and Director of the Center on the Continuum of Care in the Addictions in
Penn’s Department of Psychiatry and Director of the Center of Excellence in Substance Abuse Treatment and Education
(CESATE) at the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia.
Dr. Ascher Honored by Philadelphia Psychiatric Society
Michael S. Ascher, MD has been selected to receive the 2015 Jack Greenspan Award from the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society (PPS). This award is presented to a “psychiatrist who has been out of training
for up to seven years and has established a private practice, who has excelled in preserving, protecting,
and defending the practice of psychiatry in Pennsylvania or has made a substantial contribution to the
Philadelphia Psychiatric Society and/or organized psychiatry.” Dr. Ascher, Clinical Associate in Psychiatry
in the Department of Psychiatry, is clinically focused on addictive behaviors, harm reduction, and familyinclusive treatment. His research interests include the psychotherapy and pharmacology of addiction. Dr.
Ascher’s books include The Behavioral Addictions (Washington: American Psychiatric Publishing, 2015),
Couples and Family Therapy in Clinical Practice, Fifth Edition (London: Wiley-Blackwell, 2015), and Psychiatry Made Ridiculously Simple (Miami: MedMaster Publishing, 2015). Dr. Ascher is scheduled to receive the
Greenspan Award at the PPS’ annual Benjamin Rush Event on November 6, 2015.
Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds
Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds are held from 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm on the designated dates in the designated
locations. The next lectures are listed below. For more information about Grand Rounds and the 2015-16 schedule, please visit http://www.med.upenn.edu/psych/rounds.html
October 22, 2015
October 8, 2015
Behavioral Sleep Medicine
Behavioral Sleep Medicine – “Energy Balance”
Speaker: Mathias Basner, MD, PhD
Speaker: Matthew R. Hayes, PhD
Associate Professor of Sleep and Chronobiology in Psychiatry
Assistant Professor of Nutritional Neuroscience in Psychiatry
Unit for Experimental Psychiatry
Translational Neuroscience Program
Division of Sleep and Chronobiology in Psychiatry
Department of Psychiatry
Department of Psychiatry
University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
Location: Smilow Center for Translational Research Auditorium
Location: Smilow Center for Translational Research Auditorium
www.med.upenn.edu/psych
Penn Psychiatry Perspective - September 2015